Wake-up call for India? Social media split after police press charges against Covid-19-carrying Bollywood singer Kanika Kapoor

Indian police have charged Bollywood star Kanika Kapoor, who has tested positive for coronavirus, with endangering public health by attending parties. Her case has sparked fierce debate in India as the virus continues to spread.

Kapoor has been accused of participating in malignant acts that could pose a danger to the public. The Bollywood star, who recently returned from a trip to London, attended a party last week with a guest list of parliamentarians and other VIPs. On Friday, it was revealed that she had tested positive for Covid-19, causing panic that Indian celebrities with whom she came into contact could now carry the highly contagious respiratory illness.

Her diagnosis sparked a scandal after reports emerged that Kapoor was able to hide her travel history and bypass screening when she landed at Lucknow airport. The star has denied any wrongdoing and insists that she was checked for the virus upon returning to India but showed no symptoms.

Angry social media users have lashed out at Kapoor, noting that she has put a large number of A-list Indians at risk of catching the virus.

Citing a newspaper report, one tweeter argued that the "criminally privileged" singer may have endangered the lives of senior government officials.

Hours after her diagnosis was announced, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) issued new guidelines calling for tests to be administered to all people who may have come in contact with the virus – regardless of whether they exhibit symptoms.

ANI Live Services editor Ishaan Prakash speculated that the guidelines were likely the result of the "panic" caused by Kapoor's case.

Another commenter described the new protocols as "the Kanika Kapoor Effect."

Not everyone hopped on the anti-Kapoor bandwagon, however. Political commentator Sonam Mahajan stressed that "it takes two to tango" – and that if the Bollywood star was able to dodge screening, the government must take part of the blame.

As of Saturday, India has reported 250 Covid-19 cases leading to five deaths.

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